Pages

Law on Dowry Harassment - Does it need an amendment?

Karnataka High Court on Monday
said that the Govt. needs to spell out its stand on amendment of Section 498 A
of IPC, which is related to Dowry harassment. The court has observed that the said
section is being misused, because as per the provision, on the complaint of a
woman, the police have to file a complaint immediately and without verifying the
correctness of the complaint, arrests the Husband and his family member. The
bench suggested that, instead of directly registering the case, the victim can
file a complaint with Karnataka State Legal Services Authority and after three
or six months if the case is genuine, police can take further action.

Personally, I don’t have the
required qualification or knowledge to understand or analyse the actual motive
of the court behind this suggestion, there must be certain strong basis and I don’t
have the rights or knowledge to question them. However as a layman, there are a
few things I would like to highlight.

Two things need to be looked into
this suggestion. The dowry harassment provision is being misused. The law which
has been made to protect the women of our country, which has seen numerous
numbers of devastating effects of a curse called dowry, there are a few who are
using it for individual benefit. But before looking at a radical change in the
act, the lawmaker should also look for the benefits this provision has provided
and the percentage of its misuse. Which law, act, section, sub section in our
country is not being misused, does that mean that we will change all of them.
What is the assurance that if the law is changed, it will not be misused? Perhaps, the misuse can be even more horrific.

The court has suggested that the victim
needs to file a complaint with the Legal Services Authority and then an enquiry
will be conducted for three to six months. Such provision will definitely discourage
those who try to take benefit of the provision, but what about those who
actually suffer, who are actually the real victim? Isn’t three to six months a
long time to mentally harass the victim even more after a complaint is being
filed? Will the culprits sit silently and wait for the judgement?

The court has the opinion that
this time period will help to reduce the divorce cases. I couldn’t understand,
how? In a conservative society like ours, will a man or his family accept a woman
who had stepped outside and brought the ugly family matters in the limelight?
What if the man accepts the woman in the eyes of the law but commits a more
horrific act later?

Dowry harassment is a sensitive matter and any amendment in the provisions should only be taken up only after the actual victim is benefited. However, I would reiterate that the Honorable Court and the Lawmakers have more knowledge and understanding than me.

4 comments:

Very valid points you have raised here! In the process of sifting between the genuine and fraud cases the real victims would be victimized for a longer period... I wonder, how the law makers didnt think of this aspect! :|

If you are leasing a car you would like to look at all the terms and conditions properly before signing the lease.One more source may be a credit union that you are a member of, often they will provide lower interest rates. Vehicles are rented on a daily, weekend or weekly rate for a short period - typically not more than a few weeks.